A Past to Die For
by ks2012
Summary: Kiley moves to Gotham after her family leaves her. When she finally starts to like the local billionaire bachelor, their relationship, and her life, may be in danger when a new villain comes to town, and she knows more than she realizes.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

* * *

><p>I suppose I should have known. You see those types of movies everywhere nowadays.<p>

It wasn't as if it was that big of a shock. My parents had never looked like me, neither had any of my family. I never really had anything in common with them either. In my childhood they would go camping out at the lake. I, however, would take that time to bug spray my entire room and only leave on the occasion of food, which my mom would refuse to serve me in my room.

So when some skinny little bitch came to my parents' front door and said that we were switched at birth and she herself was their actual daughter, it didn't really surprise me at all. Upset me, sure, but didn't faze me.

I had just graduated with an MBA and was home for the summer to take a break before I had to enter the "real world". My father was the one who answered the door, soon ushering Sasha Hiljoy into the living room and calling my mother and I. It was there that she told us the truth, and all of our lives changed.

Sasha had gotten the better end of the deal. My biological parents had died months previous in an accident. No other immediate family members where alive so it wasn't as if I could get to know the family I never knew. The only thing I could get out of Sasha was that they were born and raised in Gotham City.

When Sasha was asked to donate blood after the accident, they then realized that none of her DNA matched either of her parents. After she demanded to know why, an investigation was instated, leading to the only conclusion that she had been mixed up with another baby after birth. Six girls later, she found a DNA match with my parents.

When my parents realized that they had a new daughter, one they had much more in common with than me, they swarmed on her and left me in the dust. Not that Sasha was much help. She made her position very clear when she sneered and told me I didn't belong in that house anymore.

And I didn't.

After that I moved in with a friend from college. Living a state away from what can only be described as my previous family was helpful in my recovery. Those who said you can't run away from your problems aren't always right, I guess.

In this new city I sort of floundered for a while. My depressive state as well as my shock made everything worthless. It took a while, but with the help of time and my friends I eventually came out of it, even if I was covered in scars. I eventually got a job at a local performing arts company, and my life started getting back on track.

It was a year after I had been tossed out of my family when I met Jason Harper. We met in a normal café on a normal day when both of us were on our lunch break. A year later we moved into an apartment together. Two years after that, he left.

It was pretty sudden, I had to admit. I also had to admit that I wasn't entirely unhappy about it. Truth be told I felt our relationship straining for quite some time. I had entertained thoughts about breaking up with him, and had even gone so far as to start planning how I would do it if I could only make up my mind, when he made it for me.

The unexpected part was the fact that he just _left_.

On Wednesday morning at 8:25 I kissed him goodbye. 5:40 Wednesday night I walked in to an empty house.

All of my stuff remained, including the stuff we bought together-the TV, most of the furniture, my clothes. Everything that he owned was just _gone_. The recliner he always used, the end tables, the TV stand, half of the kitchen ware, all of his clothes and toiletries had disappeared.

Jason never mentioned being unhappy. He never showed any signs of wanting to leave. Without any notice he had left my life.

I spent a week going about my normal routine. No matter how much I thought about breaking up with him, some part of me hadn't wanted it to happen.

After that week ended I made a decision that I had been thinking about for some time. When thinking of ways to breakup with Jason, I knew I needed somewhere to go. I was now 28 years old and I needed to face my past in order to move on with my future.

It was time I moved to Gotham.


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

* * *

><p>When I arrived in Gotham it was raining. According to my new landlady, this was a common occurrence. The rare thing, she told me, was the sun, especially when it came to night. I had to bite my tongue not to tell her that was the very definition of night.<p>

Shortly after making my decision to move, I went all out. Immediately I pulled out my laptop and went house hunting. I found a pretty decent condo in my price range in an area that wasn't the most glamorous, but was a fair distance from an area called the Narrows. From my research I gathered that this area was a place nobody wanted to be in. I took the hint and immediately discarded any results found in that area.

My next move was to schedule job interviews. My current job paid well, but I would need money soon, especially with the cancellation fee I had to pay to leave my apartment, not to mention the cost of the moving company.

The first afternoon in my new condo was spent unpacking and eating takeout. My first full day in Gotham was spent researching the only biological family I had. Sasha had mentioned that my mother had a cousin who still lived by the name of Jim Gordon. He wasn't a hard man to find. When Sasha first came to my family he had been merely a lieutenant. Now, three years later, he had been promoted all the way to Commissioner.

The rest of the day I continued to unpack, my mind lost in how I would approach him, what I would say, how I would deal.

I was extremely nervous and barely slept a wink.

The next day I made my way to his house. Finding his residence had admittedly taken quite a bit of digging. I realized, however, walking up to the doorstep how big of an idiot I was not to call in advance. Too late for those thoughts though, as I had already rang the doorbell. This was not a good idea. It's one shock to have a family member come to you after so long, it was even worse to have them come unexpectedly. However, from my impression of Sasha, I could only wonder if they wouldn't even care who I was in the first place. Sasha hadn't seemed to care that she had split apart an entire family and made my life a living hell to boot. What if she had learned these traits from the family she was raised by?

Why couldn't I just shut up and see how things went?

My reverie was enough time for someone to respond to the music and open the door. The man standing before me was graying. He had stress lines covering his face and glasses covering his eyes. Eyes that looked alarmingly like mine. I knew immediately this had to be him.

His face scrunched into a look of confusion, though I couldn't place what that confusion was aimed at.

"Are you Jim Gordon?" I knew, but I had to be certain.

"Yes," he nodded.

"My name is Kiley. My last name used to be Kratchey, but now I go by Hiljoy."

Recognition dawned on his face and he nodded. "I was wondering if I would ever get to meet you. You should come inside."

His home was small, not exactly what I expected from a man who held the highest post in a police force. Toys were scattered here and there, and he mumbled apologies as he led me into the living area.

"Barbara and I tell the kids a million times to clean up once their done, but you know kids, they never listen."

"Is Barbara your wife?" I asked as I sat on the couch.

"She is. She and the kids are out at her sisters. I had some work to do so I didn't go."

"I heard you were the Commissioner. Congratulations."

"Thank you. That makes me wonder how you got my address though, especially since we moved after my promotion." He looked at me curiously, and I wanted to squirm under his gaze.

I shrugged instead. "I'm really good at research."

He nodded, and that slightly placated him. "I was hoping to meet you sooner. Once Sasha left I expected to find you on my doorstep within a couple of months."

"Things didn't really go smoothly. My family accepted Sasha with open arms and things became somewhat…strained between us. I didn't really want to face facts at first."

I think he knew I was keeping something, but he nodded anyway. "I'm glad you're here now. Tell me about yourself."

We spent the rest of the afternoon getting to know each other. He seemed like a warm and loving person and it only made me wish I had known him growing up. It was well into the afternoon after he had told me multiple stories of what my parents were like when I finally asked him the crucial question.

"How did they die?"

He sighed and looked down at his hands. "Three years ago we had a terrorist come to Gotham. You'll find in this city we have our fair share of those." Something in his voice made me think this was something I needed to take to heart. What kind of town was this? "This man attacked the Narrows, releasing a toxin into the air that made everyone go crazy. Your parents were in the vicinity at the time, eating at one of their favorite restaurants. They got mixed up in everything and somehow got hurt. Their injuries were too severe; they just didn't make it."

Sasha had never revealed the cause of death of our mutual parents. As much as I hated her for what she did, I could understand not wanting to talk about this. It was so horrific it almost didn't seem real.

Almost.

"Listen, Barbara and the kids will be here soon. Why don't you stay and have dinner with us?"

I smiled. "I would love to."

Dinner was nice, and I immediately fell in love with Jim's family. They made me promise to come to dinner at least once a week, a promise I fully intended on keeping.

As he was seeing me out the door, Jim turned to me and said, "Try to get home as quick as you can. Make sure you are careful."

I smiled at him as I exited the door, turned and answered, "I will, I promise."

"You don't know this town Kiley. Within the last three years we've had a terrorist and a serial killer, not to mention the mob that's been around forever. The streets may be cleaner than they have been in many years, but they're still bad. You need to watch out."

I looked at him, trying to hide a frown. "I promise I'll be careful. I'll try not to walk the streets after dark."

He nodded at me and smiled. "I'm glad you're here Kiley."

I returned his smile. "I am too."

* * *

><p>The next day was Sunday. By the time the sun went down I practically had the entire condo unpacked and put away. Only a few boxes of unimportant items remained stacked in the closet of the guest bedroom.<p>

When Monday rolled around I had my work cut out for me. At 9 am I had my first interview scheduled. Three more were scattered throughout the day and by the time I came home I was exhausted.

"Perfect timing" said Mrs. Catcher, the owner of the building that was always at the front desk.

"I'm sorry?" I dropped my bag on the floor, too tired to continue carrying it.

"The suns about to set, don't want to be out after dark."

"Is it really that bad?"

She nodded, eager for the gossip. "Oh yeah. This city's been bad for years. First it was the mob. All of them tried to gain control and one of them succeeded. People became scared to leave their houses. Then _it_ came."

She had lost me. "I'm sorry?"

Her smile sent a feel of fright through me. "Batman. Nobody knows who he is or where he came from. All they know is he dresses like a bat and fights all of the evil in the city. After he came, even the mob was too scared to go out at night."

She must have seen the confusion on my face. "Oh he only comes out at night. It's a shame though. Just as everyone was starting to like him, turns out he went and murdered a handful of people, including the wonderful new DA who did so much to change this city around."

I picked up my bag. This city may be a bit too much for me. "Goodnight Mrs. Catcher."

"Goodnight dear. Sleep well."

I nodded as I made my way to the elevator, pushing the button for the 27th floor.

In my condo I slipped into my pajamas and sat on the couch which faced out toward the floor to ceiling windows. I turned on the TV, barely even looking at it. As I sat there I looked out into the night, hopelessly and subconsciously searching for any sign of a man dressed as a bat.


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

* * *

><p>Wednesday morning I received a call from the Palmer Center for the Performing Arts, one of the places I had interviewed for. It was a similar position to my previous job, and quite honestly it was the one I wanted the most. I quickly gave them my acceptance and started my job the next week.<p>

After that my life quickly fell into a routine. Monday through Friday I worked the normal nine to five, coming home before dark. After watching the news in Gotham City I started to understand why everyone kept telling me to stay home. Every Friday a group from work went drinking at a bar near the theater, and even they started right after work and were reluctant to stay long after dark. Sunday afternoons I spent with the Gordons. I found I was becoming very close to them and was even starting to think of them as family.

It was a Saturday night about a month after I had started my job when I got a call from work.

"Hi Kiley, this is Nate. We're having a problem with the system. It's nothing too bad, but we kind of need you to come down here and verify a few things."

I sighed. "All right, give me about 20 minutes."

I was already in my pajamas, ready to spend a night watching movies. I quickly walked in my room and started to change. I knew there was an opera that would start in ten minutes, which meant I wouldn't be seen by many ticket holders, if any. All the same I decided to change into a black dress with my good boots, though I decided to keep my glasses on.

I decided to take a taxi to the Center. Whether that was a good idea or not I still couldn't decide. As promised, 20 minutes later I walked into the lobby and straight to the ticket booth to talk to Nate. He was an 18 year old high school kid who worked there for an after school job. We had had a few chances to speak to each other during the time since I had been hired.

"What's the problem?"

"I don't know, the program just kind of blanked at one point and a few things got scrambled. I just need you to verify that I put everything in the right place. Everything I had to put in is highlighted."

He got up so I could sit down in his chair. This would take a while.

"Do you want me to get you anything?"

"Is there hot chocolate?" I asked meekly.

He smiled. "Of course."

I gave him a smile. "Thank you."

I tried to work quickly; my movies and pajamas were calling me. No matter how quickly I went I still had to be thorough. Nate soon came back with my hot chocolate and I sipped on it as I worked. As the time went by staff came and as they worked to meet the order of either their boss or the patrons.

More than once I heard them mention the customer in Balcony B. I knew from my training that this was one of our most expensive booths that was always reserved for our most appreciated customers, i.e. the ones with the most money. From what I gathered, though I was so wrapped up in my work that I wasn't paying much attention, whoever was in the booth was a high demand customer. Several times I saw attendants grumble as they walked by to fetch the newest item wanted. Glad I didn't have to deal with those people.

I finally finished about 45 minutes later. Unfortunately, this was when the intermission started, and people began filing into the lobby. I said my goodbyes to Nate and the other members of the staff and decided to take the third floor out to the parking garage which would lead me to the second entrance in the back of the building. That floor didn't give access to any of the regular seating, only Balcony seats. The chances were I would run into very few people.

The back stair was in the employee only zone and I took that up the two flights. When I entered the third floor lobby there was maybe ten or so people out. Most were near the bathrooms and only one was in my path to the garage.

He was a tall man in an impressively tailored suit with dark brown slicked back hair. He was talking on his cell phone and kept his voice quiet so as not to be overheard. I tried to respect his privacy and passed him at a distance.

I was nearing the door and my wonderful exit when the unthinkable happened. A woman, who I could only assume by her extreme beauty and plastic parts was a model, stopped me in my tracks.

"Excuse me, do you work here?"

"Um, yes I do." Oh please, don't ask me to do anything.

"Is there any way I could get a new bottle of wine sent to Balcony B? The current one is absolutely atrocious." Ah, so this is the high demand customer.

"I'm sure if you asked an attendant they would be able to get something for you." I tried to make my way past her, but she stopped me once again.

"I thought you said you work here."

"I do," I said turning back to her.

"Then you'll be able to get me some wine." She was starting to get snooty, and it was all I could do to keep my voice level.

"I'm sorry ma'am, but I work the business here, I'm not used to the nighttime requirements or where we keep any of those things. If you could ask an attendant, I'm sure they'll be able to help you much better than I can."

Now she was annoyed. "I'm not asking them, I'm asking you," she snapped.

"Is there a problem?" The deep, suave voice came from behind us and I turned my head to see the good looking man who had been talking on his cell phone.

"Yes! This woman claims she works here but she refuses to get me a bottle of wine!"

He stepped closer to us and looked at me. "She may not be the right person to ask. Maybe it's not her job."

"I'm afraid it isn't," I said, continuing to use my business voice. "I work in an office; I'm not quite familiar with how this department works."

He nodded, and he at least seemed placated. "There you are. Why don't you ask that attendant you've been continuously ordering? I'm sure he could find something."

I kept my mouth shut and my face neutral even though it sounded like he had just insulted her. Though what she did next challenged my resolve as I had to fight hard not to laugh.

"But Bruce!" she said as she stopped her foot on the floor. "That's not the point."

"Actually Natasha it is." She scoffed. "I'm afraid I have bad news, though. Something's come up and I need to leave."

"I don't want to leave." She nearly wined like a baby as she spoke. "I want to see how it ends."

"If you would like to stay you're more than welcome, but I won't be able to offer you a ride home."

She shrugged and flipped her hair. "I'm sure I'll be able to find someone to give me a ride."

He leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. "I'm sorry I had to cut our date short."

"Yeah, whatever," she said before she stalked off.

I had tried to keep my presence unnoticeable as they had gone through this little exchange, but that ended when he turned to me and gave me a smile I'm sorry to admit made my heart flutter. Sadly, I believe that was the point of it.

"I apologize that you had to see that."

I gave him a smile in return and continued in my business voice. "It's no problem."

"Natasha can get a bit dramatic."

"Again, no worries."

He looked down to see the coat in my arms. "Are you leaving? Is there somewhere I could walk you to?"

I looked down to see where he was looking then looked back to his face. "Oh, that's alright, I'm just going to get a taxi."

He gave me a strange look. "A taxi? In Gotham at nine at night?"

"Yes, a taxi. The mode of transportation that brought me here and the mode that will get me back." I should still be in business mode, but somehow my snark had creeped through.

He nearly smirked but then stopped himself and smiled instead. "At least let me walk you to the street and wait until you get safely into one."

I immediately shook my head. "Thank you, but that's not necessary. It's just out back and completely lit."

"Nonetheless I would still feel better if I could make sure at least one person arrived home safely."

I knew he was talking about his date. I also knew that he wouldn't let up. I sighed. "All right." I turned and started heading for the tunnel that led to the garage, tense as the patron walked next to me.

It was completely awkward, so I tried to start up conversation. "Did you enjoy the show?"

He gave a small smile. "From what I saw of it, no. I'm not really an opera person."

Dead end.

A small chuckle escaped him that I almost missed. "Are you new to Gotham?" he asked.

I started. "Yes, I've only been here about a month. How could you tell?"

He smirked. "You don't exactly act like you've been here long."

We reached the tunnel and instead of walking through it we took a staircase down to the ground level to exit out of the back entrance.

He walked me to the curb and I realized that though we had been walking in silence, I hadn't minded that much. I looked to him to try and gauge how he felt, but his normal smile was planted there and I couldn't read anything past his mask.

He raised his hand and whistled and immediately a cab pulled over. He opened the door and turned to me.

"Thank you for walking me to my getaway car."

He smiled. "Glad I could be of service. I hope you enjoy the rest of your evening."

"I hope everything goes alright with, well, whatever it is that you have to go do. I'm sorry, I didn't get your name."

"It's Bruce Wayne," he said with his charming smile. "Have a good evening."

"Thanks, you too." I stepped into the cab and he shut the door behind me.

I gave the cabbie my address and he pulled away from the curb. "So, how'd you get Bruce Wayne to get you a taxi?"

Only after he said this did I realize why I found that guy so familiar. Bruce Wayne, the man I had seen on the news almost every night. Bruce Wayne, the one everybody calls the Prince of Gotham, and I had treated him like he was just another person.


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

* * *

><p>The next night was my weekly dinner with the Gordons. I usually head over at four, just in time to watch the late game. I had to admit, I was a huge football fan.<p>

Barbara admitted to me once that this is the one night a week that she allows the TV to be on during dinner. "Heaven forbid I make him turn off his game."

So it was while we were sitting at the table eating beef stew that Barbara asked me how my weekend was going. I informed them of my late night work call and included my run in with Bruce Wayne.

"I had heard about him, on the news. He seems like he's pretty important, like he's a local celebrity."

"He pretty much is," said Jim. "He's the richest man in town and just so happens to be a bachelor. All the women are crazy about him and all the men want to be his friend."

"He's rich, so he's powerful," I inferred.

"Not only that. His company, Wayne Industries, does a lot of contract work for the government."

"Is it the family business?"

"Technically. He inherited it when his parents died, but when he was declared dead the company went public. I heard he bought most of the shares, so he still kind of owns it."

"Wait, he was declared dead?" I immediately stopped eating when I heard this.

Jim and Barbara shared a look, and then turned back to me. It was Barbara who spoke. "Bruce Wayne has a long, complicated story."

"He was declared dead, yet he's alive. I think this might be a pretty interesting story." Even the kids were looking up from their meals.

Jim and Barbara shared another look. "Well," Jim started. "The first thing you have to know is that he watched his parents get gunned down in a robbery."

Jim then proceeded to tell me the sad story of Bruce Wayne, all the way through his reappearance.

"It seems these days he's embracing the full billionaire lifestyle," added Barbara. "Models and drunken nights included. He even burned down his centuries-old family estate. He had a little remorse at least because he rebuilt it exactly as it was."

"So basically his parents' deaths screwed up his life."

"Wouldn't it screw up yours if you had watched your parents die in front of you?"

I nearly flinched. "Maybe four years ago."

Jim shifted. "I'm sorry."

"It's fine," I reassured him. "Water under the bridge."

He gave me a look. I returned it. We both knew that I wasn't completely over what happened, but we also knew that I really didn't want to talk about it.

* * *

><p>It was twilight when I started driving home. Normally first darkness wasn't that bad crime wise, or so I had heard. All the same, I had to stomp on my brakes when the car in front of me decided to stop suddenly. I was looking at him and cussing, wondering why on Earth he had done that, when I noticed every other car was stopped. When I looked on ahead to see what was going on, I nearly stopped breathing.<p>

All the stories I had heard, all the warnings I had been given finally hit home as I saw a sight not many Gothamites get to but all want.

Ahead of me in the intersection I saw a car speed up, racing to get away because behind it, having nearly stopped when the car did after it accidentally hit someone a few cars in front of me, was the batpod.

It was my first sighting of the mysterious Batman.

I barely concentrated on the rest of my drive. A superhero, a real life superhero had crossed my path.

When I got home I turned on the news, eager to see if they would report the sighting, or even the cause. The report that was on showed a theft of a major ruby set to be displayed in a gallery the following week. I thought this was the robbery causing my sighting of Batman, but at the end the reporter stated that the theft happened last night.

For the rest of the newscast I looked on with excitement, hoping for them to report on something that I actually had a connection to. Sadly, they never once mentioned a sighting, nevertheless a car chase.

I pulled out my cell and called Emily. She worked in the finance department at work, and had quickly become my best friend in the past month.

"Hey, you'll never believe what happened to me tonight."

"Oh my god, you're okay, aren't you?" she asked panicked.

I rolled my eyes. "If I wasn't do you think I would be talking to you now?"

There was a pause. "No, I guess not."

"Anyway, I saw Batman on my way home tonight." I got up to make myself a cup of hot chocolate.

"You're kidding! How did he act?"

"Why do you ask?"

"I don't know whether to believe the rumors about him killing all those people are true or not."

"He was actually chasing another car when I saw him."

"Hm. Interesting. I'll just have to wait impatiently for more updates."

I smiled. "I was a bit curious though, because I was watching the news and they didn't mention it."

I heard her scoff on the other end of the line. "They wouldn't. They're so anti-Batman they wouldn't give him the time of day unless there was something bad to say about him."

"Hm. I guess I'll just have to live with my own memories."

Emily laughed. "And hopefully we'll have more soon. I'll see you tomorrow."

"See you tomorrow."

* * *

><p>Though Emily had said that the news wouldn't cover the story on Batman, I still had my hopes up that I would hear what had happened.<p>

It was that reason that I was walking back to work from a nearby café looking at my phone. I was so caught up in getting the page to load and looking at the headlines that I didn't notice where I was going and suddenly ran into someone. The shock and power of it forced me to fall flat on my ass.

"I am so sorry! I wasn't watching where I was going," I said as I started to pick up my things.

"No-I wasn't watching either."

A hand was held out and I took it.

Standing up and brushing myself off I looked at the person I had run into. Good God, it was Bruce Wayne.

He looked surprised as well. "Hello again. You're the woman from the Palmer Center, right?"

I gave him an awkward smile. "I am, yes."

He shifted into a relaxed position and put his hands in his pockets. "I'm afraid I'm the one without the name now."

"It's Kiley. Kiley Hiljoy."

A look came to his eyes, but as soon as it was there it was gone, and he was smiling his charming smile. "It's nice to meet you Kiley, officially," he said offering his hand. I shook it.

"Sorry again for bumping into you."

He chuckled. "Again, I wasn't paying attention either."

He may be used to wearing a charming smile, but there was something behind it, something that made me smile in return.

"I really need to get back to work. It was good, you know, bumping into you," I finished lamely.

The chuckle this time was nearly a laugh. "Until the next time we bump into each other."

I smiled again to him, and we both went our separate ways.

At work I still had a few minutes, so I took a detour to Emily's office.

"So you know how I told you that I met Bruce Wayne."

She quickly stopped what she was doing and turned her full attention to me, eager for gossip on Gotham's most eligible bachelor. "Yes."

"I bumped into him on my way back from lunch."

She sat up straight. "No you didn't!"

"Yeah, and I mean bumped literally. As in I fell to the ground."

"Did he help you up?" she asked eagerly.

"Yeah," I said slowing, not understanding.

She clasped her hands on her chest and said, "Oh, that's so romantic!" I loved Emily, but maybe she wasn't the right person to talk to.

"Yeah, I better get back to work."

I turned but she stopped me by speaking aloud her daydreams. "Maybe now he'll realize what a wonderful person you are and he'll take you out and you'll fall madly in love and get married!" She was practically squealing.

"Emily! We just talked twice about hardly anything. I don't think it's going to amount to much, if at all."

"It's still nice to think about!" she called as I turned to walk about of her office.

"Mm hmm."


	5. Chapter 4

Ladyhouse: Thank you, I appreciate it.

* * *

><p>Chapter 4<p>

* * *

><p>I should have taken Emily more seriously.<p>

It was exactly eight days, one hour and seventeen minutes after our conversation that I realized this.

My boss, Sarah Lennox, who was our manager, called me into her office that Tuesday afternoon wanting to speak to me privately. She closed the door and walked around her desk to sit in her chair and look me straight in the face, crossing her hands on the desk in front of her.

"I've had a call," was what she started with. "Wayne Industries has decided to host their annual gala here at the Palmer Center."

I paused, looking at her in confusion. "I'm sorry, but we're not exactly the type of place to hold a party at."

"Well, it is technically a social party for the company and their rich friends, but mostly it's a celebration of art. It's a way for them to 'raise money for charity'."

I was still confused. "Okay. So it's an art gala." Why was I here? Sarah must have been reading my thoughts.

"I want you to take care of this."

"I'm sorry, what?" I know it was rude to interrupt my boss, but what she said surprised me.

She paused. "I don't understand what you're confused about."

"This isn't my area of expertise. I'm not a party planner!" I was really surprised she was trying to put this duty on me.

The look on her face told me she was getting tired of my interruptions and protests. "I know you're not, normally. For this project you will be. The fact that a high profile company like Wayne Industries is using our building for one of its functions is huge. The press from this alone will boost our sales and do us a world of good. This needs to go without a hitch, and I trust I can count on you to deliver." The tone in her voice told me this was a demand, not a request.

I sighed and said, "Okay."

She smiled. "Good. Tomorrow at ten I want you to head over to Wayne Tower to meet with their Event Planner. You'll be working with her to make sure this gala goes exactly as planned." She stood, indicating our meeting was over.

"I'll make sure of it," I said, standing myself.

She held out her hand and I shook it. "I know you won't let me down."

I forced a smile onto my face.

"I wonder if Bruce Wayne asked for you personally!" said Emily that evening as we sat at a table in a nearby Italian restaurant.

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, I'm sure," but even as I said it I wondered if it was true. It was extremely random that I was chosen for this job. It was not in my job description, nor did I have a history of it.

"Oh come on Kiley, we have departments for this! Why else would you be chosen?"

I decided not to answer.

"Anyway, this will give you a chance to work closely with him."

I rolled my eyes. "I doubt I will even see him that much. He's busy taking care of his company or whatever it is that rich men do."

She was still smiling. "I don't know Kiley. From what I've noticed he seems to be pretty highly interested in you."

"I've met him twice by accident! How can you say he seems interested?"

"Because the first time you met, he took the time to walk you to your car. The second time he stopped and chatted."

I gave her a look. "He's a playboy who loves models. He probably can't talk to a woman without smiling."

"Uh huh," she said in disbelief.

All I could do was shake my head. There was no way of getting through to her.

* * *

><p>The next day at 9:35 I left my office and took the short walk to Wayne Tower. It was such a large building and I had to admire it. It was beautiful.<p>

After talking to the receptionist I was directed to an elevator which I was to take to the forty-first floor. When the elevator doors opened I turned left and walked halfway down the hall to a glass encased office where an extremely skinny woman was working.

I knocked on the door and she motioned me inside. Coming around her desk, she offered me her hand. "I'm Jane Fairview."

"Kiley Hiljoy."

"Why don't you take a seat," she said indicating the chair in front of her desk.

"Look," I started. "I'm not exactly a party planner, so I don't know how much I can help you."

She waved away my statement. "I was already told of your inexperience. Don't worry, I'll do most of the planning, I just need you to be my in on how the Palmer Center works."

I nearly gave a sigh of relief. Instead, I smiled. "I think I can help you with that."

An hour later we both walked out of her office, deciding to eat lunch and then head to the Palmer Center to start on getting the logistics worked out. When the doors to the elevator opened, I stopped short. Bruce Wayne was leaning casually inside. _Who else?_ I mentally sighed.

"Mr. Wayne," said Jane flirtatiously. I noticed her hip had suddenly made an appearance on one side.

Bruce sent a flirtatious smile her way. "Good morning."

We both entered the elevator and the doors shut. Jane indicated in my direction and continued to talk. "This is Kiley Hiljoy, she'll be working with us on the benefit."

He smirked in my direction, but it was one I recognized as an empty one he had never used on me. "Yes, we've met."

She turned to me, shocked. "I-I wasn't aware."

I smiled at Bruce, enjoying our inside joke. "Yes, we keep bumping into each other."

He smirked at me, and then turned back to Jane. "Where are you two headed?" I paused when he said this, a little hurt and more than a little embarrassed. When we had met on the street the other day he seemed like he liked me, but with the way he was acting it was as if our encounter had never happened. Either that or he thought I was stupid for thinking our "bumping into each other" gag was cute and funny.

Jane recovered from her shock and went back to flirting. "We were just headed to lunch. Would you like to join us?"

I whipped my head around, shocked. But then again, why should I be? I was starting to learn just how much this man was loved in this city. Uncle Jim and Aunt Barbara were right.

"I would love to join you."

Lunch consisted mostly of me sitting in silence while Jane and Bruce flirted unabashedly.

It was ridiculous.

I was getting to the point where I really just wanted to get up and leave when I heard the noise level rise up. Looking up, I realized the bartender was turning up on of the television sets after being asked by a customer. The station was on GCN, and they seemed to be reporting outside of a museum.

"_I'm here at Gotham City Museum of History"_-original name-_"Where a robbery has just taken place. From what we've been told by local police authority four of the guards have been killed and another is in the hospital in serious condition."_

By now Bruce and Jane had stopped their flirtations and turned to look at the television set. _"The only item stolen was a shell from a bomb dating back to the Cold War."_

My brow furrowed. Somehow that seemed familiar. A conversation on the tip of my tongue that I just couldn't place. It was nagging at me, but I couldn't place it. I decided to just ignore it and get back to reality.

I looked over to see if either of my companions had seen my momentary lapse and was stopped short. Bruce Wayne was staring at me, and not in a flirty way.

* * *

><p>I was woken in the wee hours of the morning by a noise and at first I couldn't understand what had happened. It was then I heard the knock on my door.<p>

Honestly with all the crime in this town I was really creeped out. I still decided to put on my cotton robe and see what the commotion was about. When I looked through the peep hole, however, I found it to be what seemed to be an extremely inebriated Bruce Wayne. I stepped back from the door.

_You have got to be kidding me. _

I opened the door and he came stumbling in. Yep, really drunk. "Kiley!" he practically shouted. "Glad this was the right address, or else this would have been really embarrassing," he said laughing.

"And how exactly did you get my address?" I asked crossing my arms.

He shrugged. "I got it from your work when I asked for you to help with the gala." _So it_ was _him_. He turned to face my apartment. "Nice place. Which one's your room?" _Oh no he doesn't! _

"Look, I understand that you're very drunk and probably need a place to crash tonight, which is why you're here, but if you are going to stay, you'll be sleeping in the guest bedroom."

He leaned in close to me. "Oh come on, it's just one night."

I gave him a look. "Considering the way you were hanging all over Jane just this afternoon, I'm sure it would be," I said sarcastically.

He smirked. I rolled my eyes and led him to the guest bedroom. He fell asleep almost as soon as his head hit the pillow. Unfortunately, this was before he had gotten under the covers. I left the room momentarily to get some blankets from the hall closet. When I came back he was breathing deeply so I gently covered him.

When I turned to shut the door after leaving the room, I did a double take. I could have sworn he had been looking at me. Must have been a trick of the light.


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Bruce Wayne

The date with Natasha had been like every other date he'd been on for the past three years: purely for publicity's sake. He had thought she was just another airheaded model, but she proved to be much more annoying than that. To tell the truth, he felt sorry for the poor attendant and completely understood why every time he was called back he came slower and slower.

When intermission came he noticed that he had three missed calls from Alfred. He stepped out into the hallway to listen to the voicemails. A ruby had been stolen from a nearby art gallery. Three men had been wounded.

He needed to get to work. This, of course meant dropping another date. At the rate he was going it was a miracle his reputation wasn't tarnished.

Bruce quickly put away his phone and turned to head back to his balcony only to find Natasha in the foyer talking to a woman. She wasn't dressed for a night at the theatre, which meant she probably worked there, which could be the only reason Natasha would talk to someone like her.

When he came close he noticed that it looked and sounded like the two women were having an argument, so he decided to interrupt with, "Is there a problem?"

When Bruce found that Natasha had been ordering the woman to do something that wasn't her responsibility, he immediately tried to get her to stop. The insult that came out of his mouth couldn't be stopped, but he was astonished that she was immature enough to stomp her foot like a five year old.

In the end he was able to get rid of her. She probably went off to find some other man to bother. Hell, she probably found someone to end the night the way she thought Bruce was going to end it with her.

When he talked to the woman Natasha had been bothering, he was surprised at a woman who would take a taxi in Gotham so late at night. This, combined with the fact that she didn't seem to know who he was, screamed that she was new in town. Even though he had work to get to, his conscience wouldn't allow him to leave her alone without knowing that she would get safely into a taxi.

As business-like as she had been with Natasha and himself, he was so surprised and pleased when she spoke sarcastically to him that he nearly dropped his façade and had to stop himself from smirking.

He had walked her to the cab in silence, and liked it.

* * *

><p>Bruce knew that this had been a random meeting, so it was a surprise when he saw her again two days later. Bumped into her would be more appropriate. He had been reading a text on his phone and when he looked down at her on the ground he saw that she had been doing the same thing.<p>

It wasn't until he tried speaking to her that he realized he didn't have her name. When she said the name Hiljoy, he started. He had researched Gordon profusely after coming back to Gotham. That included all of his living and dead relatives. He had found his cousin who had been married to a man named Hiljoy and they had a daughter named Sasha, but never once had he found a Kiley.

He quickly hid his surprise and continued the conversation. Even though he was curious to know who this new woman was, it was very easy to tease and play along with her. Her smile made him drop his façade before he even knew it. It wasn't until she started walking away that he realized he had been smiling a real smile.

Bruce called Lucius and made his excuse for not coming back to work.

It had been three years since his mansion had burned down and two since it was finished being rebuilt. It was shortly after the chaos of the Joker when the builders had finally left. He sighed as he drove the Lamborghini, twisting it through the traffic effortlessly. He would never get over Rachel's death, just like anyone who had lost a loved one. It wasn't something that just went away. The pain staid with you, it just becomes easier to bear over time. It was becoming easier to bear, and he would always love Rachel.

Bruce knew Alfred was worried about him. Without Rachel, he had no one to keep him grounded in reality. No one to help him be happy. He sighed again, knowing he himself feared the same thing.

He parked in front of the manor, but walked out back to the secret entrance into the Batcave. He fully intended on knowing who Kiley Hiljoy was and where she came from.

Starting up the computers, he typed in her name. The search came with only a few results in a normal search engine, most of them about her previous job, so he hacked into the normal federal databases to find something there. He was already suspicious after this first try.

He quickly found her driver's license. It was issued only three and a half years ago, which was out of the normal timeline for renewal. He minimized the window and moved on to her credit information. That was when he found the answer to his questions. He found applications loaded into the system for a name change. Looking at the dates of the applications, things started clicking into place.

Bruce had done extensive research on Jim Gordon when he first came back to Gotham. He quickly brought up the records. Sasha Hiljoy, now Sasha Kratchey. He soon put all of the pieces together and understood the backstory.

"Master Wayne."

Bruce glanced behind him to see his faithful butler and guardian coming toward him with a tray of food.

"Mister Fox called and said that you had left early so I decided to make you some lunch."

"Thank you Alfred," Bruce said without looking away from the computer screen.

"May I ask what is so important that you had to leave?" Alfred asked looking at the multiple screens.

"This girl. I met her on Saturday at the Palmer Center the other night while she was working. I bumped into her again by chance today when she told me her name."

"She's Commissioner Gordon's cousin," said Alfred, interpreting all of the data before him. Bruce didn't say anything. "But why the interest in her?" said Alfred, looking knowingly at Bruce.

Bruce glanced at him. "She's interesting. There's something nagging me about her, though."

Alfred raised an eyebrow. "Perhaps you should take this chance to get to know her." Alfred hoped Bruce would take him up on this offer. He had long wished for someone to be a part of Bruce's life, someone he would make sure to come home to.

Bruce turned away from the monitors and pulled out his phone. "Maybe I will."

* * *

><p>It had taken some time and persuasion to get Lucius to hold the gala at the Palmer Center. Many other ideas had come from members of the board and Lucius had to consider each of them.<p>

Bruce knew that the Palmer Center had been chosen and, after having dropped a hint with one of the managers, Kiley Hiljoy had been selected as liaison. However it did come as a surprise when she stepped into the elevator with the Wayne Enterprises Event Coordinator.

The worst part was that he couldn't drop his playboy act in front of his employee, especially when she was maneuvering her body to look as appealing as possible. He had long known that Jane Fairview liked him with all the times she had all but thrown herself at him when they had the opportunity to work together. So he did what now came naturally. A little smirk here, a lot of flirting and ignoring there. Bruce knew that he had hurt her when he didn't acknowledge their little tease they had, even though he wanted to smile at her.

At lunch he continued to flirt with Jane while Kiley sat there in silence. Every once in a while they would try to include her in the conversation, but he could tell she was getting more and more annoyed.

Neither he nor Jane realized as soon as Kiley did that that almost everyone was watching the TV along the wall, but soon enough they noticed and watched as well. When the newswoman spoke about the bomb he saw Kiley start out of the corner of his eye. He looked over to see what was wrong when he noticed the look on her face. Something wasn't right; the mention of the bomb had triggered something in her head.

Something was going on with this woman and he intended to figure it out.

* * *

><p>That night he was patrolling when he came across a meeting. He had been sneaking through the back alleys, which was even harder now that he was being hunted, when he saw them through a window.<p>

He turned the volume up on the piece in his ear and listened in.

"I don't care about the cost, it's not an issue. I need the extra five pounds."

"I don't have the extra; you'll have to give me another two days."

The first man who spoke growled loudly in frustration. "FINE! Make sure you have it then!"

Batman wanted to know what they were talking about, so he walked around the building in order to follow them when they left. When the first speaker and his two lackeys passed by the alley, he saw to two lackeys carrying a case between them.

"I want you to take the note to Kiley Hiljoy's home."

Batman started. How was she wrapped up in this? He quickly shot his grappling gun to the roof where he walked along the shadows, keeping up with them.

"Is that all sir?" one of the lackeys asked.

"Then come back to headquarters. Now that we've got the bomb and the solution, we only need a few more things before we're ready." So this was the man who had stolen the bomb and killed all of those people.

The two men loaded the box into the backseat of a car, which the man in charge got into, leaving the two others behind.

Batman was torn. He needed to know what was going on. Where was the man going and what was he building? How was Kiley involved? As he turned around to head back to his new tumbler, he made up his mind. He needed to find out the answers to these questions, but first he needed to make sure Kiley was safe. And maybe, in the process, he would learn what was going on.

* * *

><p>He changed into his normal clothes and drove himself to a nearby location, where he hid his car. First he carefully checked her door to make sure nobody had come yet. Then he carefully hid two cameras giving him full view of her door and the entire hallway.<p>

Bruce put on his drunken playboy act by the time she opened the door. He didn't want her pushing him away so he quickly crossed the threshold so she couldn't oppose.

She seemed exasperated with him, and he understood that she was angry with his playboy act. He was quickly led to the guest bedroom and pretended to fall asleep. The fact that she covered him up almost made him smile at the care in the action.

Once he heard her door shut he gave it another ten minutes before he exited the room. He quickly checked the windows for signs of a break in. When he found none, he put devices on each one to alert him if they were ever broken into.

After this he slowly opened the door to her room. She was sound asleep so he looked at her windows as well, making sure they were covered.

After he was finished he turned to look at her sleeping form. Things were getting more and more interesting when it came to this girl. There were secrets he needed to find the answers to, and he would.

He was determined to find out the truth.


	7. Chapter 6

Thanks for the reviews!

Chapter 6

* * *

><p>The next morning my alarm woke me up at the normal time and it took a few seconds before I remembered the events of last night. When I did I pulled the covers back over my face.<p>

I was making breakfast for two when Bruce woke up and came stumbling out of the guest bedroom. Thank God, I was scared I would have had to wake him up myself.

"Mr. Wayne," I said in greeting.

"Bruce," he groggily mumbled as he went to sit at a bar stool.

I tried to hide my smirk as I went back to cooking. What had he gotten, four, maybe five hours of sleep? Serves him right.

Breakfast was a mostly silent affair and awkward to boot. I was nearly about to say something, anything, just to diffuse the tension when-thank heavens-the doorbell rang. I practically jumped out of my seat in my rush to get there.

There was no one outside the door, but one of those fruit bouquets was just sitting there. I looked up and down the hall and saw no one, so I picked up the vase and brought it into the kitchen.

Bruce, who for some reason was sitting as if ready to launch himself from his chair, looked at it curiously.

"What is that?"

"I'm not quite sure," I said as I sat it on the counter. "There was no one outside. Perhaps we'll find out though," I said as I noticed the card stuffed between two fake tulips-my favorite flower.

_Roses are Red  
>Violets are Blue<br>You Know What's Coming  
>I'll See You Soon<em>

My brows furrowed.

"What is it?" Bruce asked.

"I don't understand," I said shaking my head. He held out his hand for the note and I gave it to him.

He read it several times before saying, "Well you have to admit it's pretty cheesy."

I looked at him in shock. "Is that all you got out of it? What does it mean 'You know what's coming'? Who the hell sent me something like this?"

He stared at me. "Maybe you should talk to the police. Not that they'll be much help, corrupt as they are," he said shrugging.

I immediately took offense. "Hey! Jim Gordon is a good cop and I-Wait! That's a great idea. I could take this to Uncle Jim! He could help me out and would make sure to find out what's going on, seeing as I'm family and all."

Bruce stood up from his chair, now finished with his breakfast. He walked over to the fruit bouquet and began to inspect it. "You'll have to call in to work."

My shoulders slumped. "I guess I will," I said warily.

He glanced at me. "I could call for you," he said grabbing a slice of pineapple and tossing it into his mouth. I hope it isn't poisoned or anything.

I snorted. "No. If they think I'm meeting with you they would wonder why Jane wasn't meeting too. Then it would be all over the papers that I was your new conquest. No thank you."

He turned to me and smiled. "Hey, it's a great package. Continuous stares and constant badgering by the paparazzi."

"Why do you do that?" I burst at him.

His arm stopped with another piece of fruit an inch from his mouth. "What?"

"Smile at me like that, joke with me and then turn around and treat me like I'm not worth your time. It's frustrating!" My hands were moving around in emphasis.

He put his arm down, laying the piece of fruit on the counter. I would have to get on to him for that as well.

"Look, I'm sorry for the way I treated you yesterday. You didn't deserve that and I wish I could take it back." He sounded so earnest that I almost believed him.

"Really? Cause from what I hear that's pretty normal of you." I spoke more softly now, I wasn't usually the type of person who yelled.

"Sometimes I just fall into that public persona everyone knows and I don't realize it."

"Are you really standing there trying to give a sob story about how everyone misunderstands you?" I asked, plainly showing how idiotic I thought that was.

The corner of his mouth twitched and, like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar said, "Yes."

I gave him a look. "You've got ten minutes to leave while I call Uncle Jim." As I turned to leave, I glanced between him and the counter. "And clean up your stupid fruit."

* * *

><p>Twenty minutes later I was sitting on the couch facing Jim and another cop who was taking my statement. There were two other cops downstairs looking at the security footage from the landlord.<p>

"And you have no idea who could have left this for you? It didn't spark any memories?"

I shook my head. "No. I've never really known anyone who would do anything like this."

The officer leaned forward. "The fact is Ms. Hiljoy, the poem says you know what's coming. You can see how this looks bad."

I glanced at Jim. He looked torn on whether or not to stop the officer. "I understand. But I'm telling you honestly, I don't know what's going on here. Would I have called the police if I had?"

The officer sighed and leaned back. "I think I have everything Ms. Hiljoy. We'll call you if we find anything."

I nodded. "Thank you." Once he got up I turned to Uncle Jim.

"I'm sorry we couldn't be more help, and I'm sorry you were badgered like that," he said glaring at the back of the officer.

I smiled to him. "It's alright, I understand."

"We'll find out who sent you that bouquet. Until then keep your doors locked. Never open them unless you know the person on the other side."

I nodded. "Thanks Jim."

The two officers who had been downstairs walked back into the condo. "Ten minutes of footage from the entire building is missing."

Jim looked a little worried, but he quickly shook it and sighed. "That creates a problem." He stood up and turned to me. "Don't worry, we'll find something."

I smiled, trying to show him I was reassured when really I wasn't anything close. Something about this whole thing was nagging at me, like I couldn't put the pieces together.

Jim gave me a hug then led the other officers out of my condo.

I sighed and sat down on my couch. People said that Gotham was a crazy city and nothing would be normal.

I never realized how right they were.

* * *

><p>There were no more strange fruit bouquets or anything of that nature after that. As the days passed by I began to calm down and feel safe in my own home again. There was no word on who had left it for me; the deletion of the security footage was a major drawback. It was a Thursday morning not long after this that I was sitting in my living room before work watching the news when I was surprised by one of their stories.<p>

Batman had made the headlines.

After my talk with Emily about Batman and the news, I never really expected to see him on it. Granted, most times it was hard not to go the day without hearing his name in a conversation. He was either the butt of some joke, or talked about in hushed tones as if saying something about him was wrong. Especially when it was something good. Hearing about him on the news, however, was a different situation entirely. I quickly turned up the volume to listen in.

"_Two tanks of liquid nitrogen were stolen. By the time the police arrived, the truck was already leaving the premises, leaving behind two dazed men who appeared to be part of a scuffle. Batman is believed to have been working with the suspects at the time. He was seen leaving the building from the roof, and, though shots were fired, he is believed to have left unharmed."_

I sighed in relief.

I looked hard at the woman on the screen and the cops behind her. I wanted Batman to be good, honestly I did, but sometimes it was hard with everyone shouting at you that he's bad.

I turned off the TV and gathered my things.

In the parking garage there was a young woman just standing around, looking like she was waiting for something. I gave her a small smile as I passed, trying to be nice. In return I only received a scowl as her arms folded against her chest.

Okay. I continued on to my car, wondering what that was about. She seemed to be in her early twenties with long dark black hair streaked with purple and a small bouffant on top of her head. She was wearing a white shirt that easily showed her black bra underneath, with a red and black skirt and black combat boots.

As I put my stuff into the passenger seat of my car, I could feel the hairs on the back of my neck standing up. That girl was looking at me. Could this have anything to do with the fruit bouquet?

I walked around my car as my hands started to shake. They were shaking so hard my keys dropped. God was I starting to be paranoid? This was getting a bit ridiculous. My thoughts took me a moment, and during that time I hadn't noticed the girl come closer.

As I started to bend down to get my keys, I realized a hand was already there and lifting them up to me. I looked up and into the face of the girl, which was looking at me with a look of scorn and what I could only feel was hate.

"You should be more careful." She smirked. "You might just lose something that belongs to you." She turned and started to walk away. Shakily, I got into my car and drove to work.


	8. Chapter 7

Sorry for the long wait, life has gotten pretty busy-classes and exams, etc.

Chapter 7

* * *

><p>After the episode in the parking garage I practically sped to work. Too many weird things had happened to me since coming to Gotham. Whenever I seemed to calm down from one thing, another thing happened.<p>

Jane was waiting for me in the lobby when I arrived at the Palmer Center. The gala was Saturday night so final preparations were being solidified. I wouldn't exactly call Jane a friend. She was someone I had gotten to know over the course of our working together, but she wasn't someone I would call up to go out with on a Friday night. All the same she was a nice woman whom I didn't mind the company of, even if she was a little conceited.

We had been there for the majority of the morning by the time Bruce got there. We hadn't seen much of each other since the fruit bouquet incident. When we had run into each other he had been just as he promised-nice and exactly the way he acted that second time we met. I knew he put on his façade to the world and only let a few people see who he really was. I didn't honestly know why, he wasn't exactly an easy puzzle. All I knew was that I was honored, and to be quite honest happy, that I was one of the privileged few.

When he came in Jane immediately started flirting with him. He gave me a nice hello and then turned to flirt back. We began to lead him around and show him the final stages of the plans. Even though it was just a party he talked just like a businessman, the difference being that he threw in a few flirtatious remarks to Jane. When we were done, Jane made her excuses and left. She looked rather upset that she would miss out on time to flirt with her boss.

After she left I turned to the auction booklets that were lying on a table next to us. I felt Bruce come up beside me. "So how have you been?" he asked with a smile.

"Fine." Something must have shown through on my face however, because he stepped closer to me, forcing him to be in my view.

"That wasn't really convincing."

I glanced at him. He had an intense look on his face and didn't seem as if he would give up.

I set the book in my hand down and started to blurt out my concerns. "It was this girl. I went to my car this morning and this weird girl that looked like a stereotypical goth, punk girl, was there and she just stared at me. I dropped my keys and she just happened to have walked all that way to help me with them, and when she stood up she said something creepy."

"What did she say?" He had that intense look again. It was throwing me off a little.

"Something about being careful; I didn't want to lose something that belonged to me. I don't know." I looked at him a little helplessly.

He put his hand on my upper arm in a reassuring gesture. Strangely enough I had shivers up my spine. This time it was the good kind. "Everything's going to be fine. I'm sure you were just overly concerned due to everything that's been happening to you."

I looked down to the ground and sighed. He did have a point. I sheepishly looked back up to him. "I'm sure you're right."

He smiled wider and dropped his hand. "Why don't we break for lunch. I'm sure you're hungry after being so worried all morning."

I smiled. "You're right. I could do with some food."

"Come on, I know this great place down the street," he said turning around and walking away.

* * *

><p>The great place happened to be an upscale Italian eatery located in a hotel. I was worried about the paparazzi seeing us and making something out of nothing, but I had no fear because Bruce pulled his car around back. As soon as he pulled up I jumped out of the car, beating the valet who had come to open my door. Shocked, he stopped for a moment before catching himself wand walking around to take the keys from Bruce.<p>

The aforementioned man walked around his car and gave me a questioning look.

"Next time I drive," then I sharply turned around and headed through the door, but not before seeing a smile cross his face.

Once inside he led me through a hallway which eventually led to the restaurant. Down another hall I could see the hotel lobby.

The maître' d' only had to see Bruce walk around the corner before he quickly grabbed two menus and walked around to lead us to our table concealed in a back corner.

We didn't talk much while we looked over our menus and the waiter took our order, but once he left Bruce leaned on the table and looked at me head on.

"So tell me Bruce, why do you pretend to be so annoying when you can be nice?" I asked.

He looked at me in shock. "That was blunt."

I shrugged. "I'm just trying to understand you."

He shook his head. Once he was finished he stared at me for a moment, probably deciding on what his answer was going to be.

"Maybe sometimes I just find myself behaving the way people expect me to behave."

I made a face. "You really shouldn't, you know. You're a nice guy if you'd just let people see that."

He gave me a small, almost sad smile in answer. Then, his face got a mischievous look on it.

"So tell me, why did you move to Gotham?"

I raised my eyebrows. "That came out of nowhere."

He put his hands out. "What? I'm just trying to get to know you."

"Now I really do feel like we're on a first date," I muttered loud enough for him to hear.

He smirked and put his hands back together.

I sighed and relented, telling him my sordid tale about my parents. "My parents had loved me my whole life. That's what was so shocking and hurtful. That's why it took me so long to bounce back."

Bruce had been listening intently. "How long did it take you?"

"About nine months. My friends helped. One of them helped me to get a job at the local performing arts theatre. Then I started having structure back in my life. And then I met this guy."

Bruce's eyebrows shot up and he smiled. "Of course there would be a guy."

I smirked at him. "Of course. But I'm pretty sure this one doesn't end the way you think it's going to."

He smiled. "You've got me hooked. Now you're going to have to tell me the story."

"I really did love him. For a while at least; while it was still good. We reached the moving in together stage, buying things together, practically married. He could always make my bad day better." I looked away from Bruce and at the patrons of the restaurant, studying them but not really paying attention. "Things were good and I even started looking at wedding magazines. I would slow down near a jewelry or bridal store. But then I started noticing things."

I turned back to Bruce. He was looking at me intently again, and I knew I had his full attention. "It used to be just little things, you know? Those things like forgetting to put the toilet seat down; just normal everyday things that you have to get over because nobody is perfect. He wouldn't tell me things like he used to. He would spend more time working than at home. I have to admit, I suspected an affair for a short time until we had a dinner one night with his coworkers and they mentioned how much he was in his office. We just grew apart.

"Then there was this one day. It was just a normal day. Normal routine, normal moods, normal everything. But when I came home he was gone. No note, no message, nothing. Just a half empty apartment.

"That's when I made up my mind to find the only family I had left. There was nothing left for me in that town, so it was time for me to find somewhere to belong again."

Bruce sat back in his chair and stared at me. There was the longest moment of silence. I was about to say something, anything to break it when he finally opened his mouth.

"You're right. It didn't end the way I expected."

* * *

><p>The day of the gala was somewhat hectic. Jane and I had to be at the Palmer Center to make sure the final touches were perfect before we ourselves could leave to prepare. The event itself wouldn't start until nine, but Jane seemed determined to be out by one.<p>

In typical Gotham fashion, it had started to rain by the time I arrived that evening. I had hired a car to drive me and as he pulled up one of the attendants came over with an umbrella to usher me inside. I was a little concerned with my outfit (a blue gown that was fitted at the top and flared out at the bottom with my hair put up on the back of my head), that I didn't pay much attention to the outside of the building. In the future, when I looked back on this moment, I don't know why I didn't find the group of men just standing along the wall suspicious.

Inside most of the employees were already there and prepared for the evening. As I was a few minutes late, some of the guests who didn't believe in the "late is on time" rule were already there. Before I was able to wrap my head around much, Emily had caught up to me and pulled on my arm to get my attention.

"So, I didn't get much of a chance to talk to you in the past few days. Tell me, how was lunch with Bruce Wayne?"

I rolled my eyes then looked at her pointedly. "You are relentless."

"Come on, just tell me what it's like."

I smiled to my friend. "He's really nice. He asked me why I moved to Gotham and actually paid attention to the whole story."

"Hm, so he actually cares about other people. Good to know that the hot billionaire has a heart."

I laughed. "After that we just sort of talked for the rest of the time. It was actually pretty fun. The food was amazing."

She bumped her elbow into mine. "Well lady love I hope things go good for you."

I smiled back. "So what do you think?" I said indicating the room. We were using the ground floor as a sort of starting point with booklets over the painting and artists. This floor also housed the bar. The second floor is where we had the auction room located. The third floor is where the artwork available for silent auction sat, with the next two floors holding the rest of the works.

"I love it," she smiled to me. "I think you two did an amazing job. I'm sure your future boyfriend will love it too."

I had learned to roll my eyes instead of taking Emily's antics seriously.

It was then that a commotion started at the door, halting everything.


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

* * *

><p>"<em>He's here."<em>

"_Oh my gosh, there he is!"_

"_Eek! I can't believe it's him!"_

Really? Twenty-four-year-olds still squeal?

Although, to be honest my heart did skip a beat or two when I saw Bruce Wayne walk through the entrance. Damn it, Emily must be rubbing off on me.

We were on the third floor looking over the balcony where we had moved to see what all the commotion was about. Bruce had walked through the door carrying a brunette supermodel off his arm where he was currently being welcomed by Edward Palmer himself. Reporters were going crazy with the photos. Mr. Palmer motioned around him, clearly trying to show Bruce what the Center looked like all dolled up. Bruce looked around and up, where I caught his eye. We shared a smile.

The twenty-somethings next to me squealed again, clearly thinking he was smiling at them. Emily, however, turned to me with a smile that deserved an ounce of fear.

"You scandalous woman," she whispered. Thankfully, she wasn't too caught up to spill in front of a crowd of people.

"What?" I asked innocently. "It was just a smile."

She raised her eyebrow, indicating her disbelief.

I shrugged. "We're only friends. You are still trying to make something out of nothing."

"Oh come on, ever since that drunken night he spent at your house you've had a sparkle in your eye when you talk about him."

I turned sharply to her. "I do not!" I felt like I was back in the fifth grade.

Again she raised her eyebrow. "Well, _whatever_ it is you've got going on, just know that you shouldn't let other people worry you," she said turning serious. "I know you don't like attention so you're worried about the paparazzi, but don't. Let me make a proposal," she said turning business-like and turning to fully face me. "Get to know the guy, behind the scenes. If you think things are so good that you find it's something you really want to pursue, don't let others get in the way."

Though I was facing her, both of my hands still rested on the railing. I looked down once again at Bruce who was working the room. Emily did have a point. I was starting to really like Bruce, and just maybe I wanted this to turn into something more.

Before I could say anything to her another guest had claimed her attention and she turned away from me. At this point I remembered my job and decided to make my own rounds.

* * *

><p>Half an hour later I had checked on all of the employees and caterers and everyone else who was there to get a paycheck as well as a few select patrons who were very important to the event. By this time I was on the third floor and taking a drink from my first official glass of champagne for the night. I set it down on a passing tray and turned to walk way, effectively running into someone.<p>

Before I could fall, however, two arms caught me.

"I knew you would fall head over heels for me," came the sound of Bruce Wayne's voice, accompanied by his teasing smile.

I huffed with smile. "_You_ are presumptuous."

He gave me his charming smile. "Admit it, it's something you love about me."

He righted me and looked around. "This is amazing."

"Why thank you sir. I hope I'm doing you proud."

"I couldn't be any prouder." He leaned against the railing and turned his full attention to me, still smiling his small smile. "I'm sure the starving children of Gotham won't go hungry for another _year_ after this event."

I couldn't help the jolt of excitement at his statement. I helped in making that happen!

It must have shown on my face because he chuckled before saying, "It feels nice, doing something so good, doesn't it?"

I pursed my lips while still smiling and nodded. "It does. Listen, I'm having a birthday party Friday. Just a few friends and family at my apartment. I want you to come."

He barely moved for a good minute. "I would love to."

My smile grew. "Great."

All of a sudden he held out his hand. "Dance with me."

I started. I hadn't expected that. "I'm sorry?"

"Please dance with me."

I exhaled. Without realizing it I put my hand in his and he led me to the center of the room where a dance floor had been placed. His right arm went around my waist and I put mine in his left. It was somewhat hard to breathe in this position. He, however, seemed unfazed.

"So Mr. Wayne," I said trying to defuse the tension I was feeling. "I've told you quite a bit about myself, but I don't really know that much about you."

He raised an eyebrow. "I'm the richest man in Gotham. If you want to know anything just ask one of Gotham's citizens."

I rolled my eyes, tension defused. "Oh don't be so full of yourself."

He laughed hard. "So now I'm full of myself?"

"And now you're changing the subject!" I said laughing.

"Fine, fine."

"Something true."

He thought about it for at least half a minute, looking at me but only half seeing me.

"My butler is my best friend."

My eyebrows went up. "You're butler?"

"His name is Alfred. He raised me after my parents died. I admit I lost my way after losing them. No matter how bad I got he was still there."

"I'm glad you had him," I said softly.

"Me too." He was staring me in the eyes, but not like any time before. We both started leaning in, and my eyes started to close.

And then the music stopped. We both leaned back quickly and his suave smile was back on. "I have to go check on my date. I'll be back."

I nodded, reality hitting me. Oh yeah, the supermodel.

I walked off of the dance floor in order to get my breath back. That had been really close. Emily must not have seen it or else she would be right next to me squealing in my ear.

Just then a commotion started downstairs and screams erupted.

I, just like every other person ran to the rail to look down at the scene. A group of men had entered the building, all in trench coats with large guns in their hands. Doors opened behind us and more men came piling in. From the screams I heard, I gathered that this was happening on all floors.

Someone started talking on the ground floor and all of us at the railing looked down to see what was going on.

"Lovely party! I hope we're not interrupting. You see, I'm looking for a certain someone. Well, actually two certain someones."

The man talking was a blond male who was pacing the room as if he owned it, which, with all the men with guns he had, he practically did.

"I need Mr. Palmer!" he shouted so that everyone could hear. "I know he's here-he wouldn't miss something that would give his place as much publicity as this." His voice seemed familiar. Had I heard it on TV once? Did he work here?

One of the gunman pushed Mr. Palmer forward. The blond man walked up to him and started talking. With the tears and whimpers of the afraid people, I couldn't hear two floors up what he was saying.

The blond man motioned and some of his men took Mr. Palmer out of the room. He then grabbed on to a wire that was hanging from the ceiling. One of his men must have put it there for him. He started rising and we all backed quickly away from the railing.

I nearly ran into someone in my haste to get away. And, after hurting my arm by accidently hitting them, I turned to see something that shocked me even more than the fact that there were gunmen surrounding me.

Batman was standing next to me.

He looked at me after I noticed him, but we both looked away as the blond man stopped and got off his rope at our level. There was something definitely familiar about this man.

"Beautiful party you planned babydoll," he said staring me straight in the eye.

It was now, with him facing me and speaking directly to me that it finally clicked.

"Jason." It was a whisper, but his smile broadened all the same.

A motion out of the corner of my eye and Batman had pounced. Every gunman on this level who hadn't already been knocked out while we were distracted came running to help. The man I assumed to be Jason twirled out of Batman's grasp as he turned to defend himself against the onslaught. He kicked the first man in the lower leg and then pounded him on the back when he doubled over. The second man aimed his gun which Batman easily used his bracers to fling away, and then effectively slammed him to the ground where he was knocked unconscious.

The second onslaught came when one man grabbed Batman from behind in a chokehold while another man knocked Batman's legs out from under him. They effectively wrestled him to the ground. I started to worry when he didn't get back up. Though it seemed forever, he kicked one of them away and flung his arm up, the fins slicing the other man's face.

Once he got up he flung himself over the rail after the blond man, and we all ran to watch once again. He chased him out of the door and out of sight where we could all hear the scuffle. Two of the gunmen came running back into the room with Mr. Palmer in tow. Batman followed and slammed his fist into one's leg, knocking him down. The other one stopped in fear, making him an easy target, and one that Batman gladly took down.

Once they were both unconscious Batman turned to Mr. Palmer and untied his hands before turning and running back through the door.

By then though, most everyone in the room had realized the reality of the situation. Batman had saved Mr. Palmer, and a large group of many classes had witnessed it.


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

* * *

><p>I was in my apartment, lying in bed in my pajamas. My favorite book was in front of me. The temperature was perfect, I was content. I had never come to Gotham, it was a distant memory of an option I had decided against. I had never heard of Batman, or knew that anything bad other than the normal, sadly weekly, murders and drug busts were happening. I had no family, that was true, but I had my friends and that was all that mattered. Life was good, and I was happy.<p>

At least, that's where I was in my mind. In reality I was sitting on the wall that surrounded the higher elevation garden from the walkway talking to two officers.

"We have several eyewitnesses that told us the Captain spoke to you."

"I'm sorry, who?"

"The blonde man who seemed to be the ringleader. He called himself the captain."

Out of all the supervillain names he could have chosen, it was Captain?

I sighed. "He complemented me on the party. Somehow he knew that I organized it," I said the last part begrudgingly.

"They told us you said something after that, but no one could clarify what it was."

The man asking questions was young, 23 at the oldest, and held himself like he thought a little more of cops than he did everyone else. I nearly snapped at him, but at that moment I heard a very welcome voice.

"Why is it that you always seem to be involved in this stuff?" Uncle Jim asked.

I gave him a meek smile. "I wish I knew."

He turned to the two officers. "I'll take care of this from here."

The officers gave him a look then turned away.

"You should be careful; this could be considered a conflict of interest," I told him wryly.

He looked around in that wary way of his. "None of this is going to court. We don't even have anybody in custody."

"She mentioned a name."

I jumped at the gruff voice. Batman had appeared suddenly to the left side of Uncle Jim. Jim didn't jump, but he did look a little surprised when he turned toward Batman.

"What does he mean?" he asked turning toward me.

Having two terrifying forces staring me down was unnerving.

I hesitated, not really knowing what to say.

Jim shifted. "Kiley, tell me what's going on."

I grimaced. "It's just that, well, when he spoke, his voice was familiar, and he looked familiar and, well, when he spoke directly to me, he seemed…"

"Seemed…what?"

I looked him in the face. "He reminded me of my ex-boyfriend."

Jim took a step back and looked around, his way of relieving tension.

"Your ex-boyfriend," he said quietly, turning back to me. "You're saying that the homicidal maniac we have been chasing the past few weeks could possibly be your ex-boyfriend?"

I put my hands in the air. "Look, I'm not a hundred percent sure; I'm just saying that in the heat of the moment his appearance reminded me of Jason."

"Well that's just great."

"What was his last name?" asked the gruff voice.

I flinched, being reminded that the big scary guy in a batsuit whom I could barely see in the darkness was still there. I turned to look him in the general area of his eyes. "Harper. Jason Harper. Born June 21, 1982." The last part I said sadly, knowing that this was a real possibility. The guy I had dated for three years, had at one point thought I was going to marry, could possibly be a homicidal maniac running around Gotham.

You know, my life had been normal once.

* * *

><p>On Wednesday I turned 29. Jim and Barbara had invited me over for a family dinner. Even though I had asked them not to give me any presents, it seems my pleas fell on deaf ears. Jim and Barbara gave me a silver bracelet inset with rubies-my favorite stone. Though the bracelet was pretty, it didn't top what the kids have given me-framed pictures of their family, just the kids, and one with me and the kids. I happily told them it was one of the best gifts I had ever gotten.<p>

I wasn't home ten minutes when my doorbell rang. I opened the door to find Bruce. I just couldn't help but smile. Damn, I think I was really starting to like this guy.

"Happy birthday," he said, handing me a present. I raised my eyebrow and let him in.

He gave me a smile and took his coat off, making his way to the couch. I sat down next to him and put the present in my lap.

"Aren't you going to open it?" he asked.

I sighed, giving him a wry look and picked up the package. "You really didn't have to do this, you know."

He smiled. "Oh, I know."

Ripping through the paper I came to an unlabeled box. Giving him a look I turned the box over and opened it.

I honestly had no idea what it was. It was blue and fabric and was filled with something like foam. I turned to Bruce. "What is it?"

"It's one of those cushions skaters use for when they're learning and they fall down. I thought you could use it since whenever we meet you always manage to fall."

It took two seconds for me to stare at him before I took the butt cushion and hit him with it.

He burst out laughing and held his hands up in surrender. "Hey, it wasn't even my idea, it was Alfred's!"

"Your butler suggested you get me a butt cushion?" I asked incredulously.

"Well, he may have been joking at the time; he was walking away so I couldn't see his face."

I couldn't help but give a "humph" with laughter. I shook my head and looked away-straight to the TV where they happened to be talking about Batman.

I grabbed the remote and turned up the volume. The female reporter was talking to some specialist who was on video in some other location.

"This doesn't really coincide with what we've been told about Batman."

"Certainly not. His actions seem to imply that he cares about saving people. None of the criminals died this time, which goes against everything we've been told about him. A year ago when Gotham was terrorized by the Joker we found that Batman had killed several mob bosses, as well as policemen, in his so called 'search for justice.' In this case he left everyone alive while trying to defend hundreds of people. Now, many are starting to wonder if we should rethink our position on Batman."

"They've been debating this for the past few days," Bruce said.

"I know. I've been listening to see peoples' reactions. You know, I really hope he turns out to be the good guy. This city needs another one, even if he does dress like a giant flying mammal."

* * *

><p>Friday night was my birthday party. I had invited only a few people to my condo-the Gordons, Emily and a few others from work, Jessica (my friend from college I had moved in with after the family fiasco), and of course Bruce Wayne.<p>

He showed up late, as expected, but what wasn't expected was that he was followed by a white haired older gentleman.

"Hi Bruce, I'm glad you came."

"Kiley," he acknowledged as he walked through the door, followed by the other man. "This is Alfred."

I gave him a huge smile and went to shake his hand. "I'm so happy to meet you! Bruce told me about you."

"A pleasure, I'm sure," he said in a British accent.

"Bruce never told me he was bringing you, but this is a nice surprise."

He chuckled. "Well, Master Wayne does have a knack for not letting others in on his schemes," he said with a wink.

I giggled. This man was like a grandfather who was willing to tease those he loved.

Bruce rolled his eyes. "Okay, okay. Isn't this a party? Why don't we join in?"

It was a fun evening, with almost as relaxed of an atmosphere as I was wanting. Bruce's attendance made everyone just slightly uneasy with him being the "Prince of Gotham."

Before long the evening was starting to draw to a close so I went to open my presents. I got the normal menial gifts from my coworkers with a slight personal touch seeing as they were my friends.

One present stood out from the rest. It was a small box about the size of a cereal bowl with a large red bow of the same size sitting on top. I opened the lid to find a small black ring box. Curiously I pulled it out, wondering if it was a gag gift. I opened the lid and froze in shock.

A ruby ring.

Pure nausea. I could feel the bile rising in the back of my throat as my eyes turned instinctively to the one man it didn't, yet it did, make sense to look at-Bruce. His face turned to stone at the look in mine and I couldn't make out anymore. I turned to Uncle Jim who had partially risen out of his chair out of police instinct.

"He really is Jason."

* * *

><p>I was finally alone. I had shut the door behind Jim who had finally finished questioning me. After my statement he had sent everyone home, everyone except Bruce who pretty much demanded to stay. Alfred had kindly offered to drive Barbara and the kids home so Jim would still have his car.<p>

Jim asked me many questions-the main of which answered how I knew it was him. The answer-he had always promised to one day give me a ruby ring. Seeing it instantly reminded me of the day long ago when a ruby had gone missing.

After several more questions they left. Bruce went first and Jim stayed behind to warn me to make sure I left everything locked and to be careful. I told him I would. Even with the warning, I still must have been in too much shock.

I just didn't expect six men to come crashing through my front door ten minutes later.


	11. Chapter 10

A/N: I am sooooo sorry it took so long, I had a bit of writer's block and I didn't really know how I wanted to do this chapter.

Chapter 10

Bruce Wayne

* * *

><p>It wasn't long before Bruce knew Kiley was missing. He had immediately gone to the bunker that he still kept in case of emergencies, in order to suit up and figure out what was going on with Jason.<p>

That was when his alarm went off.

He knew it was the one connected to Kiley's apartment, so he hurried as fast as he could. He crept quietly up to the door which was wide open. Silently he crept inside, looking and listening for any movement. He searched the entire apartment before he was satisfied that no one was there.

His chest felt hollow. Kiley had been kidnapped, and he hadn't been able to stop it. He didn't give himself time to sulk, and instead the calculative part of his brain kicked in and he started to look around for clues.

After an hour of looking he was starting to grow restless. He hadn't found one thing that would be a viable lead in finding the people that took her. On the table in front of the couch lay the box holding the ruby ring. Bruce had no idea what made rubies so special. Why a ruby ring instead of a normal diamond? Why not a sapphire or an emerald for that matter? Could this be a clue? How could it; Kiley had known what the ruby meant, so it was obviously something that went way back for both of them. But what if it did? Kiley seemed to know more than she thought. Throughout her history with Jason he had dropped clues as to his future hopes and plans for what he meant to do with his crime spree. She just didn't see it all well enough to put all of the pieces together. What if the ruby was a part of this big scheme?

Batman clenched his hands. He had no idea what any of this meant, and the only person who did had just been taken from him with no hint whatsoever as to where she had gone.

He lifted his arm and prepared to throw the ring when he heard movement outside of the door. Quickly he put the ring back down on the table and ducked into the shadows, preparing himself.

It was a few seconds before the movement became a man walking through the door, and when it did Batman slipped out of the shadows to make himself known.

Jim Gordon looked in his direction and then his shoulders slumped. "Is she-"

"Missing" Batman finished.

"Have you found anything?" Jim asked, looking around.

"Nothing."

"I knew something bad was going to happen," Jim said looking around. "There were just too many coincidences. Once she got that ring-" He shook his head. "I should have never let her out of my sight."

"Do you know what's special about rubies?"

He shook his head again. "No clue. She never really talks about Jason much. I think he hurt her when he left, as much as she doesn't want to admit it."

Bruce felt a stab of jealousy. He ignored it however; now was not the time or the place.

Jim started talking again, but about what Batman didn't pay attention. A sliver of light caught his attention from just under a table against the wall. He quickly walked over and examined it. It was a small knife, one that had probably been lost and forgotten in the fight. If there was any way-

There. Just near the hilt was an engraving.

_J.H.M._

He had to trace this. It might lead him to the people who had taken Kiley.

He straightened and turned to leave. Before he could make it very far, however, he heard Jim's voice calling him to wait.

Jim looked him as straight in the eye as he could in the darkness. "Find her. She's my niece. Find her."

Batman looked at him, then turned away and left.

* * *

><p>Bruce twitched in his chair. He was sitting in one of his expensive suits in his expensive boardroom ignoring a dull manager giving his dull report in a dull meeting of Wayne Enterprises.<p>

It had been three days since Kiley had gone missing. He had tried everything with the initials J.H.M.-weapons companies, metal workers, weapons shops, convicted felons. Every database he had had been tried and nothing was popping up. He was frustrated and worried.

What bothered him the most, however, was the fact that the knife was left at all. Even though Kiley had put up a good fight, once they had her (or had her knocked out), they would have remembered a fallen weapon, especially if it was something special. This led him to the same thought over and over again.

Kiley's ex-boyfriend, the Captain, left the knife for Batman to find. He wanted Batman to come to him, and when he did, there would definitely be a trap waiting for him.

After the meeting was over Bruce waited until everyone left before standing. Lucius was the only person remaining in the room besides him and that was only because the other man was used to Bruce staying behind to talk with him about his nightly duties.

"I heard about your friend" he said after snapping his briefcase shut and turning toward Bruce. "I'm sorry. Have you found anything?"

"A small knife. It had the initials J.H.M. on it and I can't manage to find anything."

Lucius looked away in thought. "J.H.M. There used to be a metalworker by the name of James Henry Martin. He died some forty odd years ago, but he did have a son."

Bruce perked up. "I found Martin, but I didn't think to look into his descendants." He turned toward Lucius. "Thank you Mr. Fox," and he walked briskly out of the room.

Back in the Batcave he was running the name through his computer and locating all descendants. James Martin had one son who had died ten years ago, leaving behind his only son who had a criminal record of forgery, public disturbance, and charges from fights. He quickly grabbed the man's address and ran to dress.

* * *

><p>Batman sped down the lanes; there was hardly any traffic on the streets.<p>

When he reached the building he parked a few blocks away. He suspected the building would be surveyed for any disturbances, and he sure as hell was going to be a disturbance. He decided to go the less suspicious route and scaled the opposite side of the building next door. He shot his grappling gun and started his rise. To his surprise, this ended up being the best decision. As he was crossing the third floor he caught a glimpse of a group of men, highly armed and prepared for a fight.

He immediately stopped his grappling gun on the next floor and quietly made his way into the empty room. He knew that the Captain had been expecting him to trace the knife to the building next door, so he wouldn't be expecting him to stumble upon this hiding place. So why not use the front door?

He made his way down to the next floor and to the apartment below. The door was ajar and he peaked through the crack to survey the surroundings.

It was a dingy apartment with a kitchen toward the back next to a bathroom. In of the kitchen was the dining room where three men were standing around a table. To the right was a door going to what he could only assume was the bedroom. He had apparently walked in during the middle of a conversation.

"Hah, that Bat guy won't even realize that he has the wrong building. He'll run straight into the trap. The Captain doesn't need that many of us at this building."

He decided now was the time. Batman kicked the first man in the shins before swinging his arms around to strike the next man in the chest. When he doubled over Batman swung him into the third. As he did, he didn't realize the first man had recovered and raised his gun to shoot him in the side. Batman stumbled. The suit had protected him, but the bullet would leave an extremely nasty bruise.

He turned and used his forearm to knock the other man's arm, causing him to throw the gun to the other side of the room. He used all of his strength and punched the man in the gut. The two other men had hit their heads on the counter on their way down, so now all three were out.

He straightened up and turned toward the closed door. Opening it, blood started to pound in his ears and his hands tightened in rage. The room was just as dingy as the rest of the apartment. The only object in it was a cheap bed with metal bedposts with painted flowers. Lying on the bed was an unconscious Kiley dressed scantily in only a silk nightdress that barely went to mid-thigh. Her wrists were tied to the bedposts. From the look of the soiled bedclothes, there was no doubt in his mind what had happened during her captivity.

Batman quickly untied her wrists and gently picked Kiley up. She barely stirred and he could tell she was in a bad shape. He left the apartment and went as fast as he could safely carry her. Putting her into the Batmobile, he quickly drove to the nearest emergency room.

* * *

><p>Kiley was fine. The doctors said she would make a full recovery physically, but mentally time would tell.<p>

They didn't need to tell Bruce that.

After two days Kiley had yet to wake up. After he had dropped Kiley off as Batman he had immediately gone back to the manor to change. The entire time he had tried to think of different excuses to "find out Kiley was in the hospital." Nothing he had come up with so far was plausible. Alfred watched with worry as Bruce paced back and forth in the foyer.

"Master Wayne, perhaps you'd better sit down before you wear out the new carpet."

Bruce stopped briefly to glare at him and then resumed pacing.

It turned out he didn't have to worry about that problem. Two hours after he had gotten home he had received a call from Jim Gordon.

"I'm sorry to call you so late Mr. Wayne" he started.

"Call me Bruce. Have you heard anything about Kiley?" He hated this part of pretending. It was wasting precious time.

"Batman found her. He brought her to Gotham Medical Center. She hasn't woken up yet-they're still doing tests. You're her friend so I thought you should know."

"Thank you Jim. I'll be there shortly."

Since then he had spent most of his time at the hospital, just waiting for anything to happen. He and Jim had spoken over what to do next, and he had even gone under his mask in order to talk strategy. All three of them (even if two of the votes were basically from the same person) agreed.

It was the second night since Batman had rescued her that Kiley woke up. When she did it didn't take her long to clear through the disorientation.

"Kiley," Jim said softly as he sat next to her. "We don't know what Jason is going to do next. Bruce and I have been talking-" her eyes flicked to Bruce who was standing behind Jim and then back to him. "We've decided that you should stay at his home, just for a while, until we get things figured out."

Kiley looked between the both of them. Then she settled back and gave a trace of a smile. "Okay."


End file.
